1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bicycle brake light system, and more particularly, to an improved brake light warning system whereby a series of brake lamps are activated and illuminated in a graduated manner dependent directly on the amount of deceleration of a bicycle as perceived, interpreted, and transmitted via a programmable logic circuit to reward-facing illuminatable lamps.
2. Background of the Invention
Visual and verbal signaling have long been used customarily by recreational and professional bicycle riders in the form of hand gestures (hand pointing down with palm facing rearward) and vocal warnings (“slowing” and “stopping”) as an improvement over relying exclusively on a trailing rider's perception of an advance rider's deceleration. Yet, of the two forms of signaling, visual signaling has experienced the lion's share of attention in the form of rearward facing electrical lighting devices that illuminate to indicate the deceleration or stopping of a vehicle, both motorized and non-motorized. It is true that the most ubiquitous of these are in the area of motorized vehicles and many examples have been elucidated in the literature. Yet, in the field of non-motorized, human-powered vehicles, the conditions in which bicycle riders operate (e.g. slipstream drafting in close relation and proximity to other riders), the exposure to untoward collisions with other riders, and the disadvantage and vulnerability of riders to surrounding motorized vehicles begs the need for a warning system that conveys immediate and accurate deceleration information. In short, advancements in visual signaling are an absolute requirement in assuring the safety of an ever increasing population of bicycle operators.
In bicycling, it is routine to attach a rearward facing illuminating lamp, a “brake light”, to the rear of a bicycle to provide braking information to approaching vehicles, both automotive and cycling, and pedestrians. In its simplest form, a rear mounted lamp is manually activated through a compressible hand brake and wire system where the hand brake is attached to the handlebar of a bicycle and designed to run parallel to the handlebar grips at the most distal portion of the bar. The cyclist, to initiate deceleration, compresses the hand brake which causes a connected wire to be drawn taught. The pulling force from the activated wire actuates U-shaped brake calipers to forcibly engage and grip the bicycle rim resulting in deceleration. The manual act of deceleration activates any one of a number of mechanisms to facilitate positive lamp illumination. Yet, while several designs and assemblages for brake lights exist, all systems convey the same essential information. Fundamentally, bicycle brake lights are basically dyadic in nature where the brake light is either illuminated or not illuminated depending on the presence or absence of deceleration thus resulting in a single intensity illuminated signal.
As can be seen in classic brake lamp examples, as disclosed by Musselman in U.S. Pat. No. 3,906,443 and Sopko in U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,343, the manual slowing of the bicycle through brake caliper compression is the basis for the electrical activation of a brake light and subsequent brake light illumination. Specifically, Musselman utilizes the contact between the wheel rim and electrical contact brushes to complete a circuit to actuate lamp illumination. Sopko similarly utilizes contraction of the brake calipers to slidably engaged a threaded sleeve and piston system to complete a circuit and energize a brake bulb. Clearly, each is reliant upon manual deceleration and exemplifies single intensity illumination.
Further, modifications have been made to brake lighting systems that enhance their self-sustainability. As depicted in Pub. No. US 2012/0249316 by Morrow et al., the presented brake light system not only utilizes brake compression to initiate brake bulb illumination, but also makes use of the friction created between the slowing bicycle wheel and a spinning brake wheel to create the electrical current necessary to power the light itself. Again, although an improvement on the functionality of the brake, the Morrow invention is still dependant on the physicality of deceleration and displays simply the fact that the rider has activated the brake with no indication as to a degree or grade of deceleration.
Improvements on basic wired designs are also prevalent. As depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 8,622,595 issued to Chen, the basic wired brake light compression unit gives way to a wireless assembly comprised of a controller device capable of emitting a signal to the brake lamp receiving unit to generate a light signal from the brake lamp. Too, the brake lamp unit incorporates the addition of a right and left turn signal into the lamp assemblage to notify following motor and foot traffic of the bicycle driver's intern to turn and in which direction the driver will be going. Yet, even with improved technological advances and further augmentation to information displayed, the critical information of degrees of deceleration remains absent.
Additionally, progress also exists in the related area of quantifying the amount of deceleration of a vehicle, albeit in a motorized version. As enumerated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,219 issued to Perez et al., the breaking system of a motor-driven vehicle can be modified to initiate a brake light upon deceleration and to enhance the signal with a pulse rate commensurate with the degree of deceleration. Utilizing an accelerometer, the Perez's brake warning system measures the rate of deceleration through deceleration forces (G forces). This system, though, fails to properly take into account the gravitational effect of the weight and total effect of positional gravity (i.e. in a downward slope) and therefore lacks the sensitivity required for a bike braking system to be completely accurate. U.S. Pat. No. 7,649,447 issued to Lu has sought to overcome the deficiencies of Perez's invention by incorporating motion into Lu's invention. Lu too incorporates an accelerometer, but in a markedly different manner. The '447 patent utilizes a control circuits unit that monitors the movement of the bicycle and disallows specific signals (i.e. due to G-forces created when a bicycle is stationary on a downward slope). In addition, the '447 patent invention functions to indicate breaking on a decline despite the acceleration experienced by the bicycle and the unit itself due to gravity on a downward slope. Yet, while Lu overcomes Perez's sensitivity shortcomings, his resolution is exceedingly complex (incorporating control circuits, micro-controllers, and multiple deceleration modes) and is design-specific to motorized vehicle deceleration. What's more, while Lu's invention may have the capability to delineate between severe and light braking, up to and including finite degrees of braking in between, the invention does not precisely convey that information to the following motorist or pedestrian—an attribute quintessentially crucial to the immediate invention.
Finally, wide-ranging modalities have been incorporated into automotive braking systems that seek to address the need for more accurate and timely deceleration information. Publication No. US 2011/0304455 (Automotive Brake Light With Graduated Display) as discussed by Kisiel, has sought to improve upon the infirmities of previous inventions by developing an automotive graduated lamp display that interprets and rearwardly displays deceleration information in a graduated or graded manner via use of an accelerometer. Kisiel's invention is an improvement over the invention described by Mathis in U.S. Patent Application No. 2010/0085180 that seeks to use the mechanical pressure generated in various braking situations to reflect the rate of deceleration via the use of a rheostat (potentiometer) that converts pressure into voltage and displays more pressure as greater illumination via increases in voltage. It is too a marked decidedly discernible improvement over the structured invention posed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,753,769 issued to Elliott that utilizes a complex interpretation of decreased accelerator pressure depression and increased brake pedal actuation to convey light to moderate to heavy braking as a function of the automobile driver's passive deceleration and active braking actions. Yet, each of these inventions is specifically designed for use in an automobile and is not easily relatable to use in a bicycle where bicycle riders trail intentionally closely to take advantage of “drafting” and therefore operate at much shorter distances and within a greatly decreased time with which to act and react to deceleration. Plainly, the mantra of increased distances between vehicles as speed increases in automotive traffic is not directly transferable to bicycle riding where close formations in groups or “pelotons” remains constant even with increased speeds. It is this differentiation that is paramount to the utility of the present invention.
While many endeavors exist to convey real time braking information in both motorized vehicles and bicycles to following traffic, none yet has accomplished the communication of such information in a manner that is both accurate and timely in terms of bicycle deceleration. This invention seeks to resolve the issue of transmitting specific, discreet and timely information to following traffic in the form of an ergonomic, wireless deceleration display system.